Written Answers Tuesday 17 March 2009

Scottish Executive

Access for People with Disabilities

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers it has in relation to the provision of toilet facilities for disabled people in town centres, retail shopping centres and leisure facilities.

Stewart Stevenson: Scottish building regulations address the provision of sanitary accommodation within new, altered, extended or converted buildings.

  Standard 3.12 (sanitary facilities) of the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004, as amended, requires that "Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that sanitary facilities are provided for all occupants of, and visitors to, the building in a form that allows convenience of use and that there is no threat to the health and safety of occupants or visitors".

  This standard and accompanying guidance was revised in May 2007 to include a range of measures to improve access to, and use of, these facilities and to ensure that all new buildings are better suited to meet the differing needs of occupants and visitors. A key issue, identified within guidance, is the need to provide accessible sanitary accommodation in any building where sanitary accommodation is required.

  It should be noted that current building regulations are only applied to existing buildings where proposals are made to alter, extend or convert a building, or part of a building.

Access for People with Disabilities

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers it has to review current planning regulations to include provision for toilets designed to the Changing Places standard.

Stewart Stevenson: Land use planning guides the future development and use of land. It is about where development should happen, where it should not and how it interacts with its surroundings. Issues relating to the internal design of buildings, including facilities such as toilets etc, are not matters that planning authorities would consider when coming to a decision on a proposed development. They are not therefore the subject of planning legislation.

  Scottish building regulations address the provision of sanitary accommodation within new, altered, extended or converted buildings.

Access for People with Disabilities

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review current planning regulations, including the Building Regulations: Technical Standards Part M: Drainage And Sanitary Facilities , to include provision for toilets designed to the Changing Places standard.

Stewart Stevenson: There are no proposals at present to amend the accessibility standards within Scottish building regulations.

  Toilet provision is addressed under Standard 3.12 (sanitary facilities) of the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004. This requires that "Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that sanitary facilities are provided for all occupants of, and visitors to, the building in a form that allows convenience of use and that there is no threat to the health and safety of occupants or visitors".

  This standard and accompanying guidance was revised in May 2007 to include a range of measures to improve access to, and use of, these facilities and to ensure that all new buildings are better suited to meet the differing needs of occupants and visitors. A key issue, identified within current guidance, is the need to provide accessible sanitary accommodation in any building where such accommodation is required.

Access for People with Disabilities

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken to support the Changing Places campaign for accessible toilets for people with more profound disabilities since signing up to support the campaign.

Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government was involved in the review of the UK good practice document, BS 8300: 2009, which addresses delivery of inclusive buildings, to provide design guidance on Changing Places toilets.

  The presence of this information within a well-established UK reference document will assist both in developing awareness of the need for such facilities and in the design of practical solutions.

Apprenticeships

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people were undertaking apprenticeships in each parliamentary constituency in each of the last five years.

Fiona Hyslop: Skills Development Scotland, who have responsibility for collating statistics related to modern apprenticeships, do not break information down by parliamentary constituency across the whole of Scotland.

  I would refer the member instead to the answer to question S3W-21442 on 9 March 2009 which details how many people completed a modern apprenticeship in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Concessionary Travel

Karen Whitefield (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the review of the national concessionary travel scheme is examining the possibility of allowing two carers to be eligible for free travel where a disabled person is unable to travel with only one carer.

Stewart Stevenson: The review of the Scotland-wide Free Bus Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled People is looking at how the scheme has been operating since its introduction in April 2006. This includes considering the eligibility criteria for companions. We anticipate the report of the review will be published within the next month.

Creative Industries

Christina McKelvie (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that everyone has the opportunity to participate in a diverse cultural life, in line with the statements made on the main Arts, Culture and Sport page of its website.

Michael Russell: Improving access to a diverse range of arts and cultural opportunities for the people of Scotland should start with sustaining those who produce the artistic and creative output people experience and enjoy. We are working closely with partners in local government and the national culture bodies to support the creative sector, ensure their work can be accessed, and that the chance to take part in all forms of cultural and creative activity is open to all.

Creative Industries

Christina McKelvie (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the outcomes of its meeting with representatives of Scotland’s artistic and creative communities scheduled for 18 February 2009.

Michael Russell: I met with representatives of Scotland’s creative and artistic communities at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre on February 18, 2009. This meeting was an initial fact-finding discussion, which gave those present the chance to hear my thoughts on the direction of cultural policy in Scotland, and to share their views on current issues. Full audiovisual coverage of the event is available on the Scottish Government’s website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ArtsCultureSport.

Debt Management

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to inform people of the risks of excessive borrowing.

Alex Neil: Financial education and learning helps people to understand their finances and develop budgeting and other skills. A wide range of activity is delivered throughout Scotland, both by schools and a variety of agencies across communities for those beyond school age. Examples of some of these activities were included in the Strategy for the Financial Services Industry in Scotland 2008 Annual Report which was published in May 2008. This detailed activities for year 3 of the Strategy and outlined high level plans for year 4. The next report is in preparation. In September 2008, we published (online) a series of case studies Sharing a Wealth of Experience: Scottish Models of Financial Learning for Adults , which provide more information on innovative local projects.

Enterprise

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it takes to ensure that its support for business is co-ordinated with that provided by local authorities and chambers of commerce.

Jim Mather: Business Gateway advice services are provided in lowland Scotland under contracts let by Scottish Enterprise in October 2007 to successful contractors following a competitive tender exercise. The management of these contracts was transferred to 12 lead local authorities in the Scottish Enterprise area in April 2008. On-going work with COSLA, the Scottish Local Authorities Economic Development (SLAED) Group and Enterprise body representatives will:

  secure the effective transfer from Scottish Enterprise to local authorities of the national business gateway functions;

  consider the Business Gateway process and delivery segmentation to ensure that it remains fit for purpose during this period of economic challenge, and

  introduce a nationally consistent Business Gateway service in the Highlands and Islands.

  Action in support of economic recovery is co-ordinated through the recently-established Strategic Group on Economic Recovery, which includes the Scottish Government, the Enterprise Agencies, VisitScotland, Skills Development Scotland and key representatives of local government.

  In addition, government works closely with a range of business organisations, including the Scottish and local Chambers of Commerce.

Fisheries

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much aid has been awarded to fishermen following policy initiatives to respond to rising fuel prices and whether any changes to those policy initiatives resulted from subsequently falling fuel prices.

Richard Lochhead: £325,115.08 has been paid out to fishermen as part of a package of measures designed to help the fishing industry adapt in order to ensure its long term future. This includes £316,476 for VMS warranties and £8,639.08 to help cover the cost of maintaining safety equipment.

  A further £248,511.06 has been awarded to Scottish fishermen through the European Fisheries Fund in order to help increase fuel efficiency.

Forth Crossing

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether ministers share the positive view of the Forth Estuary Transport Authority chief engineer of the effectiveness of the cable-drying system being applied to the Forth Road Bridge.

Stewart Stevenson: Information from the Forth Estuary Transport Authority is that the dehumidification process is progressing in line with expectations. We will not know whether the process has been successful until the cables are re-inspected in 2011-12.

Forth Crossing

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Forth Road Bridge will be able to remain open to HGV traffic beyond 2021 if the Forth Estuary Transport Authority chief engineer is correct in his assessment of the effectiveness of the cable drying.

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether uncertainty about the future strength of the Forth Road Bridge cables due to corrosion remains the sole reason for the construction of an additional crossing.

Stewart Stevenson: If the dehumidification process is successful, the requirement for weight restrictions would need to be assessed to take account of the deterioration to the cables that has already occurred. However, the Forth Road Bridge (FRB) has a number of maintenance problems which are worsened by the presence of HGV traffic. It is clearly not certain that the FRB will provide a reliable and resilient crossing for the current weight of traffic in the long-term.

Forth Crossing

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact the new routes for traffic joining the proposed Forth Replacement Crossing will have on air quality in South Queensferry and Kirkliston and on noise pollution and the quality of life of residents.

Stewart Stevenson: Detailed analysis of environmental impacts and appropriate mitigation is currently underway and will be reported in an Environmental Statement later in 2009.

Forth Crossing

Andy Kerr (East Kilbride) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-18829 by John Swinney on 6 January 2009, what method of funding for the proposed Forth Replacement Crossing the Scottish Futures Trust has recommended to Transport Scotland.

John Swinney: The Scottish Futures Trust participated in the collaborative process which arrived at the decision to procure the Forth Replacement Crossing conventionally using public funds.

Fuel Costs

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what costs were associated with the Fuel Task Force established to work on policy to respond to rising fuel costs in 2008.

Richard Lochhead: As a response to rising fuel costs, the Scottish Government funded a package of measures designed to help the fishing industry adjust in order to better prepare for the long-term. As part of this process, total costs of £3,774.16 were associated with the Fuel Task Force meetings in 2008.

Healthcare Associated Infection

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reasons the criteria for submission of Clostridium difficile isolates to the Scottish Clostridium difficile Reference Service have not been revised since October 2007.

Nicola Sturgeon: Since November 2008, following introduction of the Protocol for Clostridium difficile snapshot programme, the criteria for submission of Clostridium difficile isolates has been expanded to include a representative collection of isolates originating from patients with mild, moderate and severe diseases and from all NHS boards. In addition, isolates continue to be submitted as set out in the protocol dated October 2007.

  The snapshot programme will generate information on the distribution of Clostridium difficile PCR (polymerase chain reaction) ribotypes currently present in Scotland. These data will help to inform how the monitoring of strains should take place in future.

Healthcare Associated Infection

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reasons the guidance on Clostridium difficile on the Health Protection Scotland website has not been amended to include the testing of all symptomatic patients, with diarrhoea, aged 15 and older.

Nicola Sturgeon: Surveillance will be extended from 1 April 2009 to include patients aged 15 and over. Guidance is currently being amended to take account of this change.

Homecoming Scotland

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-20418 by Jim Mather on 24 February 2009, how it will ascertain whether the core funding of £5 million for Homecoming Scotland 2009 has generated £40 million of tourism revenue.

Jim Mather: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-19785 on 30 January 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Housing

Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the housing debt has been for each local authority in each of the last five years, also showing the annual percentage increase and average debt per house.

Alex Neil: The following tables are based on local authorities’ Housing Revenue Accounts and show:

  Table 1: Annual outstanding housing debt;

  Table 2: Annual percentage increase, and

  Table 3: Average outstanding debt per house.

  Table 1:Local authority housing: outstanding debt, (£ million).

  Actual Figures as at 31 March to 2007, Near Actual for 2008

  

 
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Scotland
 2,126
 2,006
 1,965
 1,907
 1,842


 Aberdeen City 
 95
 97
 102
 114
 119


 Aberdeenshire 
 140
 137
 131
 127
 126


 Angus 
 23
 23
 24
 23
 24


 Argyll and Bute
 41
 38
 36
 na
 na


 Clackmannanshire 
 20
 20
 22
 26
 32


 Dumfries and Galloway
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Dundee City
 116
 120
 121
 125
 126


 East Ayrshire
 69
 63
 55
 53
 56


 East Dunbartonshire
 26
 23
 22
 17
 15


 East Lothian 
 6
 -
 5
 16
 25


 East Renfrewshire 
 20
 20
 21
 20
 22


 Edinburgh, City of
 254
 252
 262
 275
 288


 Eilean Siar
 38
 37
 37
 na
 na


 Falkirk 
 57
 53
 45
 40
 36


 Fife 
 152
 131
 117
 115
 103


 Glasgow City
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Highland 
 176
 168
 161
 154
 146


 Inverclyde 
 83
 81
 73
 69
 na


 Midlothian
 7
 2
 3
 9
 29


 Moray 
 45
 44
 40
 38
 36


 North Ayrshire
 67
 61
 58
 59
 58


 North Lanarkshire 
 116
 106
 97
 87
 86


 Orkney Islands 
 1
 -
 -
 -
 -


 Perth and Kinross 
 28
 24
 20
 17
 18


 Renfrewshire 
 137
 142
 146
 142
 117


 Scottish Borders
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Shetland Islands 
 53
 52
 50
 48
 47


 South Ayrshire 
 53
 49
 51
 53
 54


 South Lanarkshire 
 145
 131
 131
 133
 131


 Stirling 
 25
 20
 17
 19
 19


 West Dunbartonshire
 81
 81
 83
 82
 81


 West Lothian 
 32
 32
 39
 48
 48



  Table 2: Local Authority Housing: Outstanding Debt, Annual Percentage Change

  

 
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Scotland
 -11%
 -6%
 -2%
 -3%
 -3%


 Aberdeen City 
 -4%
 2%
 5%
 12%
 4%


 Aberdeenshire 
 -2%
 -2%
 -4%
 -3%
 0%


 Angus 
 -7%
 -1%
 2%
 -2%
 2%


 Argyll and Bute
 -11%
 -7%
 -5%
 na
 na


 Clackmannanshire 
 -9%
 5%
 6%
 19%
 24%


 Dumfries and Galloway
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Dundee City
 2%
 3%
 1%
 3%
 1%


 East Ayrshire
 -6%
 -8%
 -13%
 -3%
 5%


 East Dunbartonshire
 -14%
 -10%
 -7%
 -23%
 -7%


 East Lothian 
 -63%
 -100%
 -
 252%
 55%


 East Renfrewshire 
 -4%
 -3%
 4%
 -4%
 8%


 Edinburgh, City of
 0%
 -1%
 4%
 5%
 5%


 Eilean Siar
 -3%
 -2%
 0%
 na
 na


 Falkirk 
 -14%
 -8%
 -14%
 -12%
 -10%


 Fife 
 -10%
 -14%
 -10%
 -1%
 -11%


 Glasgow City
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Highland 
 -5%
 -4%
 -4%
 -4%
 -5%


 Inverclyde 
 -5%
 -2%
 -10%
 -5%
 na


 Midlothian
 -47%
 -73%
 66%
 181%
 232%


 Moray 
 -2%
 -4%
 -9%
 -5%
 -4%


 North Ayrshire
 -8%
 -10%
 -4%
 1%
 -1%


 North Lanarkshire 
 -16%
 -8%
 -8%
 -10%
 -1%


 Orkney Islands 
 -55%
 -100%
 0%
 0%
 0%


 Perth and Kinross 
 -18%
 -17%
 -16%
 -14%
 8%


 Renfrewshire 
 -1%
 4%
 2%
 -2%
 -18%


 Scottish Borders
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Shetland Islands 
 -2%
 -3%
 -4%
 -4%
 -1%


 South Ayrshire 
 -5%
 -7%
 3%
 3%
 2%


 South Lanarkshire 
 -10%
 -10%
 0%
 2%
 -2%


 Stirling 
 -14%
 -21%
 -14%
 12%
 3%


 West Dunbartonshire
 -6%
 1%
 2%
 -1%
 -1%


 West Lothian 
 -24%
 -1%
 22%
 24%
 1%



  Table 3:Local Authority Housing: Outstanding Debt Per House (£)

  

 
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Scotland
 5,491
 5,386
 5,505
 5,572
 5,646


 Aberdeen City 
 3,757
 4,035
 4,257
 4,865
 5,199


 Aberdeenshire 
 9,751
 9,835
 9,576
 9,430
 9,600


 Angus 
 2,650
 2,752
 2,816
 2,861
 2,968


 Argyll and Bute
 6,770
 6,950
 6,378
 na
 na


 Clackmannanshire 
 3,509
 3,912
 4,000
 4,740
 6,267


 Dumfries and Galloway
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Dundee City
 7,022
 7,504
 7,953
 8,592
 8,950


 East Ayrshire
 4,490
 4,467
 3,893
 3,882
 4,265


 East Dunbartonshire
 5,409
 5,806
 5,401
 4,253
 4,094


 East Lothian 
 683
 702
 557
 1,975
 3,115


 East Renfrewshire 
 5,537
 5,560
 6,120
 6,274
 7,020


 Edinburgh, City of
 10,228
 10,638
 11,071
 12,050
 13,331


 Eilean Siar
 20,832
 20,585
 20,570
 na
 na


 Falkirk 
 3,072
 3,086
 2,578
 2,344
 2,112


 Fife 
 4,293
 4,115
 3,542
 3,591
 3,276


 Glasgow City
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Highland 
 11,492
 11,547
 11,047
 10,724
 10,479


 Inverclyde 
 8,829
 8,918
 8,715
 9,186
 na


 Midlothian
 1,026
 395
 492
 1,414
 4,735


 Moray 
 6,908
 6,946
 6,503
 6,265
 6,023


 North Ayrshire
 4,415
 4,260
 4,069
 4,251
 4,304


 North Lanarkshire 
 2,660
 2,525
 2,443
 2,265
 2,294


 Orkney Islands 
 743
 -
 -
 -
 -


 Perth and Kinross 
 3,213
 2,634
 2,455
 2,155
 2,385


 Renfrewshire 
 8,752
 9,287
 10,066
 10,467
 8,820


 Scottish Borders
 na
 na
 na
 na
 na


 Shetland Islands 
 27,540
 27,230
 25,884
 25,807
 26,481


 South Ayrshire 
 5,398
 5,692
 5,800
 6,203
 6,399


 South Lanarkshire 
 4,814
 4,939
 4,714
 4,965
 4,986


 Stirling 
 3,673
 3,413
 2,726
 3,220
 3,440


 West Dunbartonshire
 6,353
 6,320
 6,919
 6,988
 7,007


 West Lothian 
 2,264
 1,894
 2,862
 3,622
 3,752



  Source: Local authority Housing Revenue Account (HRA) returns to Scottish Government, Communities analytical Services.

  Notes:

  Stock transfer: Housing Revenue Accounts relate solely to income and expenditure on houses owned by councils. Over the period covered by these tables council housing stock for six councils was transferred to newly created housing associations. Details of the transfers follow. The tables show debt for these councils as "not applicable", marked as "na" from the year in which the transfer was made.

  From 2003-04 Glasgow, Dumfries and Galloway, Scottish Borders.

  From 2006-07 Argyll and Bute, Eilean Siar.

  From 2007-08 Inverclyde.

Housing

James Kelly (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers are available to local authorities to deal with houses in the private sector that fall into disrepair.

Alex Neil: Local authorities currently have powers under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003 to deal with defective and dangerous buildings and under the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 to deal with houses in serious disrepair.

  The Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 gives local authorities new and updated powers to deal with disrepair in houses. A local authority will be able to serve a work notice requiring work to be carried out on a house or flat that fails to meet the tolerable standard, is in serious disrepair, or is in disrepair and is likely to deteriorate rapidly or damage other premises if nothing is done to repair it.

  Local authorities will also have new powers to prevent houses falling into disrepair in the first place. They will be able to serve a maintenance order requiring owners to produce a maintenance plan for up to a five year period. This can be required where living accommodation has not been, or is unlikely to be, maintained to a reasonable standard, or where the benefit of work from a work notice has been reduced or lost.

  The local authority will be able to enforce a work notice or maintenance plan, and recover the costs for doing so, where the owner fails to implement it.

  The 2006 act also extends and makes more flexible the powers available to local authorities to assist owners to carry out maintenance and repairs. Authorities are expected, as a general rule, to encourage and if necessary assist owners to act on disrepair, before using enforcement powers.

  These powers under the 2006 act will come into force on 1 April 2009, and local authorities will have up until 31 March 2010 to make the transition to these new powers from those under the 1987 act. In all cases it is up to the local authority to determine when to take action to deal with houses in disrepair.

Justice

Margaret Mitchell (Central Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many unpaid fiscal fines there have been in each of the last five years, broken down by sheriffdom.

Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Court Service assumed responsibility for collection and enforcement of fiscal penalties (fines, compensation and a combination of both) as of 10 March 2008. The responsibility for collecting fiscal fines previously lay with the district courts.

  The detailed information requested (from 10 March 2008) is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and a copy will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 47909).

Justice

Margaret Mitchell (Central Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the financial value has been of unpaid fiscal fines in each of the last five years, broken down by sheriffdom.

Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Court Service assumed responsibility for collection and enforcement of fiscal penalties (fines, compensation and a combination of both) as of 10 March 2008. The responsibility for collecting fiscal fines previously lay with the district courts.

  The detailed information requested (from 10 March 2008) is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and a copy will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 47910).

Local Government

Jackson Carlaw (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to answer to question S3W-20360 by Jim Mather on 11 February 2009, whether it will list the (a) total population of people of all ages, (b) number of staff employed and (c) ratio of local authority employees to total head of population in each local authority.

Jim Mather: The information requested is set out in the following table. Part (a) shows the latest estimates of total population by local authority. Part (b) shows the latest statistics on the number of staff employed by each local authority. This includes both full-time and part-time staff.

  Table 1: Total Population, Local Authority Staff and Ratio of Staff to Total Population by Local Authority

  

Local Authority
(a) Total Population
(2007)
(b) Staff Employed Local Authority (Head Count)
2008 (Q3)
(c) Ratio of Staff
to Total
Population


Aberdeen City 
209,260
11,492
1 in 18


Aberdeenshire
239,160
13,831
1 in 17


Angus
109,870
5,765
1 in 19


Argyll and Bute
91,350
5,271
1 in 17


Clackmannanshire
49,900
2,869
1 in 17


Dumfries and Galloway
148,300
8,214
1 in 18


Dundee City 
142,150
8,267
1 in 17


East Ayrshire
119,570
6,789
1 in 18


East Dunbartonshire 
104,850
4,935
1 in 21


East Lothian 
94,440
4,902
1 in 19


East Renfrewshire 
89,260
4,796
1 in 19


Edinburgh, City of
468,070
20,116
1 in 23


Eilean Siar
26,300
2,559
1 in 10


Falkirk 
150,720
8,010
1 in 19


Fife 
360,500
22,454
1 in 16


Glasgow City 
581,940
31,841
1 in 18


Highland 
217,440
12,726
1 in 17


Inverclyde
81,080
4,760
1 in 17


Midlothian 
79,510
4,734
1 in 17


Moray
86,870
5,121
1 in 17


North Ayrshire
135,760
7,454
1 in 18


North Lanarkshire 
324,680
17,884
1 in 18


Orkney Islands 
19,860
2,137
1 in 9


Perth and Kinross
142,140
6,084
1 in 23


Renfrewshire
169,600
8,844
1 in 19


Scottish Borders
111,430
5,774
1 in 19


Shetland Islands 
21,950
3,825
1 in 6


South Ayrshire
111,690
5,654
1 in 20


South Lanarkshire 
309,500
15,795
1 in 20


Stirling 
88,190
4,440
1 in 20


West Dunbartonshire 
91,090
6,266
1 in 15


West Lothian 
167,770
8,419
1 in 20



  Source:(a) General Register Office for Scotland "Mid Year Population Estimates" (June 2007). (b) Scottish Government "Joint Staffing Watch Survey" Quarter 3 2008 (September 2008).

Local Government Finance

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has concerns about the level of local authority debt.

John Swinney: Legislation places local authorities under a duty to "determine and keep under review the maximum amount it can afford to allocate to capital expenditure", and hence the amount of borrowing it will need to undertake, and requires that in doing so local authorities have regard to the Prudential Code.

  The key elements of the Prudential Code are that expenditure plans must be affordable, prudent and sustainable, and that associated decisions are in accordance with good professional practice and are consistent with local strategic planning, asset management planning and proper option appraisal.

  In 2007-08 the Scottish Government provided local authorities with £916.6 million of support for borrowing through the payment of loan charge support.

Local Government Finance

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive by how much each local authority increased its borrowing debt, including Housing Revenue Account debt, in each of the last 10 years.

John Swinney: The following tables show the year on-year change in total outstanding debt as at the end of each year from 1999 onwards for all local authorities in Scotland. This information is drawn from information provided by local authorities in their annual returns.

  Over this period of time a number of councils have transferred their housing stock to private ownership and this has had a significant effect on the total debt outstanding. Two additional tables are therefore provided showing separately the change in General Fund (i.e. non-housing) debt, and the change in the Housing Revenue Account debt.

  All values are shown in £000.

  Change in Total Debt – Year to 31 March

  

 Local Authority (£000)
 1999
 2000
 2001
 2002
 2003


 Aberdeen City
 2,083
 2,530
 7,571
 -1,656
 -6,862


 Aberdeenshire
 4,796
 2,621
 -2,519
 6,876
 398


 Angus
 1,081
 2,704
 6,459
 2,322
 1,507


 Argyll and Bute
 3,147
 -833
 2,112
 2,161
 2,572


 Clackmannanshire
 2,946
 1,362
 1,920
 1,657
 178


 Dumfries and Galloway
 1,404
 -413
 3,660
 2,490
 -3,177


 Dundee City
 2,705
 3,310
 4,543
 6,659
 1,925


 East Ayrshire
 4,968
 -2,983
 1,434
 3,553
 -409


 East Dunbartonshire
 -1,268
 -4,886
 4,950
 3,722
 -1,877


 East Lothian
 2,727
 -2,513
 -780
 2,082
 -9,837


 East Renfrewshire
 3,598
 -1,579
 3,181
 793
 7,008


 Edinburgh, City of
 8,664
 -8,766
 22,953
 -7,405
 -23


 Eilean Siar
 1,049
 2,644
 9,289
 4,031
 -159


 Falkirk
 912
 913
 1,439
 189
 -2,620


 Fife
 3,270
 4,045
 20,848
 2,931
 8,193


 Glasgow City
 24,222
 -29,131
 39,298
 18,079
 -844,650


 Highland
 2,685
 1,155
 4,365
 4,156
 3,124


 Inverclyde
 5,164
 -1,959
 -257
 2,171
 2,842


 Midlothian
 -1,678
 -1,007
 1,435
 -1,384
 -2,341


 Moray
 4,119
 2,259
 4,276
 816
 2,552


 North Ayrshire
 433
 -5,592
 5,855
 -2,510
 10,451


 North Lanarkshire
 -17,651
 -25,330
 -6,574
 -10,728
 -24,223


 Orkney Islands
 1,188
 237
 2,516
 3,794
 3,657


 Perth and Kinross
 3,335
 -521
 4,568
 3,984
 -1,287


 Renfrewshire
 -5,694
 -4,885
 6,968
 -4,210
 -6,565


 Scottish Borders
 8,034
 -870
 6,494
 -310
 -61,601


 Shetland islands
 -402
 -2,560
 -1,574
 240
 -1,942


 South Ayrshire
 7,234
 400
 3,849
 4,871
 3,976


 South Lanarkshire
 -11,249
 -21,170
 225
 -9,500
 -15,573


 Stirling
 -623
 2,442
 9,720
 -1,209
 303


 West Dunbartonshire
 -2,156
 -1,379
 403
 2,154
 -1,461


 West Lothian
 -4,552
 -2,875
 -5,322
 -11,445
 1,241


 Central Fire Board
 991
 681
 -336
 251
 474


 Dumfries and Galloway Fire Board
 356
 248
 51
 378
 204


 Fife Fire and Rescue
 578
 445
 411
 315
 445


 Grampian Fire
 566
 1,000
 1,291
 1,057
 729


 Highland and Island Fire
 479
 1,355
 1,005
 1,557
 1,370


 Lothian and Borders Fire
 1,397
 764
 756
 1,318
 1,947


 Strathclyde fire
 2,418
 2,133
 2,070
 2,762
 3,292


 Tayside fire
 32
 436
 782
 535
 1,077


 Central Police
 172
 -60
 383
 463
 538


 Dumfries and Galloway Police
 371
 291
 341
 155
 396


 Fife Police
 245
 123
 345
 -126
 2,147


 Grampian Police
 -1,106
 252
 -1,797
 -536
 -340


 Lothian and Borders Police
 -189
 -355
 999
 952
 3,313


 Northern Constabulary
 5,003
 830
 -887
 10
 1,677


 Strathclyde Police
 347
 3,149
 1,618
 2,408
 2,531


 Tayside Police
 767
 169
 1,160
 1,236
 1,868


 Tay Bridge
 1,985
 266
 373
 312
 1,752


 Strathclyde Passenger Transport
 4,465
 65,559
 4,794
 2,067
 6,837


 Total Debt
 73,368
 -15,344
 176,664
 44,488
 -904,423



  

 Local Authority (£000)
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Aberdeen City
 -692
 20,562
 14,215
 15,203
 45,373


 Aberdeenshire
 -2,414
 -222
 -217
 10,019
 4,581


 Angus
 6,989
 4,509
 6,843
 13,784
 1,897


 Argyll and Bute
 -3,137
 -2,699
 5,631
 -29,330
 1,088


 Clackmannanshire
 356
 3,314
 5,500
 9,846
 8,647


 Dumfries and Galloway
 -87,334
 -1,917
 2,400
 3,725
 4,829


 Dundee City
 4,258
 7,860
 11,462
 16,063
 -3,544


 East Ayrshire
 2,021
 -2,672
 -6,482
 5,128
 20,496


 East Dunbartonshire
 -3,579
 -2,129
 -2,337
 -859
 -7,851


 East Lothian
 -14,148
 -5,304
 15,667
 26,262
 21,298


 East Renfrewshire
 4,657
 3,451
 4,526
 -474
 4,317


 Edinburgh, City of
 -4,012
 -25,993
 25,975
 58,528
 46,827


 Eilean Siar
 5,746
 -3,786
 4,275
 -39,655
 -1,376


 Falkirk
 -7,435
 5,827
 609
 7,754
 5,878


 Fife
 -8,519
 -4,134
 -936
 33,633
 8,322


 Glasgow City
 -10,675
 10,261
 -19,928
 44,118
 -1,618


 Highland
 -4,336
 2,680
 5,017
 5,622
 5,565


 Inverclyde
 4,484
 -1,363
 -3,287
 -558
 -46,694


 Midlothian
 -4,145
 -3,124
 1,281
 5,963
 20,503


 Moray
 1,615
 3,535
 -5,322
 1,630
 -3,291


 North Ayrshire
 -5,069
 -13,369
 7,793
 6,149
 5,335


 North Lanarkshire
 -19,254
 1,079
 23,132
 -3,013
 4,857


 Orkney Islands
 4,135
 939
 2,697
 472
 19


 Perth and Kinross
 1,848
 5,599
 -1,079
 4,020
 10,987


 Renfrewshire
 -7,403
 -628
 2,970
 7,761
 -18,754


 Scottish Borders
 3,515
 6,051
 1,080
 3,709
 6,781


 Shetland islands
 -1,265
 -1,341
 -2,206
 -380
 -2,234


 South Ayrshire
 884
 1,797
 2,316
 837
 3,681


 South Lanarkshire
 -16,591
 -21,355
 44,383
 56,300
 42,687


 Stirling
 -3,014
 -742
 1,617
 6,935
 -8,865


 West Dunbartonshire
 -3,114
 4,545
 5,731
 3,544
 287


 West Lothian
 -12,610
 14,035
 34,536
 22,211
 31,370


 Central Fire Board
 1,314
 -590
 -625
 -669
 -597


 Dumfries and Galloway Fire Board
 245
 -404
 -500
 -516
 0


 Fife Fire and Rescue
 385
 -700
 266
 -761
 0


 Grampian Fire
 675
 -1,355
 -1,177
 -986
 -767


 Highland and Island Fire
 2,339
 -1,399
 -1,549
 -1,524
 -1,511


 Lothian and Borders Fire
 819
 -2,571
 -2,826
 -3,093
 -3,384


 Strathclyde fire
 4,456
 -6,778
 250
 -14,800
 -7,740


 Tayside fire
 1,429
 -1,211
 -859
 -965
 -1,030


 Central Police
 6,963
 -994
 -1,022
 -858
 -636


 Dumfries and Galloway Police
 980
 -287
 -309
 -331
 0


 Fife Police
 2,625
 -79
 -1,253
 -1,002
 0


 Grampian Police
 0
 -321
 -550
 -351
 0


 Lothian and Borders Police
 4,793
 -3,147
 -3,111
 -2,979
 -306


 Northern Constabulary
 1,822
 242
 -1,140
 -972
 -941


 Strathclyde Police
 3,101
 -8,110
 -5,951
 -4,381
 -2,561


 Tayside Police
 1,992
 -914
 -937
 -1,006
 -1,125


 Tay Bridge
 1,582
 -3,507
 -250
 2,256
 -15,422


 Strathclyde Passenger Transport
 -2,135
 -11,041
 -12,920
 -14,500
 -15,000


 Total Debt
 -144,853
 -37,900
 153,399
 247,509
 160,378



  Change in Non-Housing Debt Outstanding – Year to 31 March

  

Local Authority (£000)
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003


Aberdeen City
8,321
7,757
20,618
3,648
-2,266


Aberdeenshire
5,367
3,742
242
9,379
4,709


Angus
2,973
4,615
8,668
3,672
3,865


Argyll and Bute
4,601
659
3,346
2,906
6,160


Clackmannanshire
2,202
2,157
4,760
2,983
2,699


Dumfries and Galloway
3,131
2,666
6,557
6,106
2,119


Dundee City
5,150
2,500
3,584
5,848
1,355


East Ayrshire
7,121
-1,167
3,353
4,453
3,724


East Dunbartonshire
1,184
-2,828
6,351
5,677
3,709


East Lothian
6,370
1,020
4,740
7,256
-377


East Renfrewshire
3,710
-410
3,377
2,110
8,333


Edinburgh, City of
6,757
-10,752
25,460
-6,910
500


Eilean Siar
2,622
3,444
10,059
4,669
1,512


Falkirk
3,805
3,909
6,796
5,655
8,477


Fife
8,528
10,902
25,475
9,888
18,361


Glasgow City
70,954
-19,740
72,281
3,981
-20,159


Highland
9,531
9,667
12,568
9,261
12,787


Inverclyde
7,628
-648
2,589
3,403
5,045


Midlothian
-110
627
2,965
894
2,315


Moray
4,294
2,922
4,390
1,519
3,850


North Ayrshire
3,056
-1,953
9,424
1,575
12,874


North Lanarkshire
-1,379
-9,353
12,095
7,910
344


Orkney Islands
2,013
1,439
2,996
4,280
4,035


Perth and Kinross
3,856
2,424
6,562
7,618
3,245


Renfrewshire
64
-5,955
5,793
-2,439
-3,878


Scottish Borders
9,640
-238
7,990
645
2,711


Shetland islands
239
-239
0
0
0


South Ayrshire
7,035
1,535
3,699
5,506
6,399


South Lanarkshire
888
-6,483
12,872
3,109
3,123


Stirling
1,513
5,471
11,268
1,478
6,289


West Dunbartonshire
-2,203
-585
1,301
4,203
2,100


West Lothian
343
3,499
-160
-3,761
12,829


Central Fire Board
991
681
-336
251
474


Dumfries and Galloway Fire Board
356
248
51
378
204


Fife Fire and Rescue
578
445
411
315
445


Grampian Fire
566
1,000
1,291
1,057
729


Highland and Island Fire
479
1,355
1,005
1,557
1,370


Lothian and Borders Fire
1,397
764
756
1,318
1,947


Strathclyde fire
2,418
2,133
2,070
2,762
3,292


Tayside fire
32
436
782
535
1,077


Central Police
172
-60
383
463
538


Dumfries and Galloway Police
371
291
341
155
396


Fife Police
245
123
345
-126
2,147


Grampian Police
-1,106
252
-1,797
-536
-340


Lothian and Borders Police
-189
-355
999
952
3,313


Northern Constabulary
5,003
830
-887
10
1,677


Strathclyde Police
347
3,149
1,618
2,408
2,531


Tayside Police
767
169
1,160
1,236
1,868


Tay Bridge
1,985
266
373
312
1,752


Strathclyde Passenger Transport
4,465
65,559
4,794
2,067
6,837


Total non-Housing Debt
208,081
87,890
315,378
131,636
147,046



  

 Local Authority (£000)
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Aberdeen City
 3,334
 18,417
 9,011
 3,028
 26,313


 Aberdeenshire
 3
 2,902
 5,454
 14,325
 5,019


 Angus
 8,704
 4,834
 6,361
 14,180
 1,572


 Argyll and Bute
 1,927
 180
 7,589
 6,423
 1,088


 Clackmannanshire
 2,318
 2,423
 4,253
 5,821
 3,469


 Dumfries and Galloway
 3,215
 -1,917
 2,400
 3,725
 4,829


 Dundee City
 2,079
 4,101
 10,262
 12,601
 -3,263


 East Ayrshire
 6,247
 2,874
 2,026
 6,794
 15,886


 East Dunbartonshire
 573
 395
 -708
 4,192
 -7,833


 East Lothian
 -4,187
 634
 11,063
 14,656
 17,186


 East Renfrewshire
 5,620
 4,150
 3,726
 258
 3,029


 Edinburgh, City of
 -2,823
 -23,699
 15,585
 46,027
 34,234


 Eilean Siar
 6,778
 -2,852
 4,358
 -2,299
 -1,376


 Falkirk
 1,986
 10,684
 8,204
 13,171
 10,765


 Fife
 8,144
 16,744
 12,636
 35,256
 12,445


 Glasgow City
 -9,594
 30,005
 -19,928
 44,118
 -1,618


 Highland
 5,560
 10,130
 12,461
 12,438
 12,621


 Inverclyde
 9,148
 340
 4,756
 3,187
 21,668


 Midlothian
 1,815
 1,847
 65
 417
 -1,287


 Moray
 2,545
 5,214
 -1,522
 3,679
 -1,441


 North Ayrshire
 968
 -6,778
 10,155
 5,282
 7,989


 North Lanarkshire
 2,928
 10,705
 32,018
 7,097
 4,886


 Orkney Islands
 4,899
 1,564
 2,697
 472
 19


 Perth and Kinross
 8,185
 10,330
 2,655
 6,836
 6,149


 Renfrewshire
 -5,522
 -5,454
 -429
 11,247
 -216


 Scottish Borders
 3,542
 6,080
 1,151
 3,874
 6,781


 Shetland islands
 0
 0
 0
 1,476
 9


 South Ayrshire
 3,508
 5,720
 840
 -877
 1,718


 South Lanarkshire
 -781
 -7,122
 44,674
 54,275
 44,848


 Stirling
 1,061
 4,623
 4,409
 4,962
 -7,263


 West Dunbartonshire
 1,820
 3,848
 4,373
 4,217
 -1,629


 West Lothian
 -2,529
 14,262
 27,568
 12,913
 23,819


 Central Fire Board
 1,314
 -590
 -625
 -669
 -597


 Dumfries and Galloway Fire Board
 245
 -404
 -500
 -516
 0


 Fife Fire and Rescue
 385
 -700
 266
 -761
 0


 Grampian Fire
 675
 -1,355
 -1,177
 -986
 -767


 Highland and Island Fire
 2,339
 -1,399
 -1,549
 -1,524
 -1,511


 Lothian and Borders Fire
 819
 -2,571
 -2,826
 -3,093
 -3,384


 Strathclyde fire
 4,456
 -6,778
 250
 -14,800
 -7,740


 Tayside fire
 1,429
 -1,211
 -859
 -965
 -1,030


 Central Police
 6,963
 -994
 -1,022
 -858
 -636


 Dumfries and Galloway Police
 980
 -287
 -309
 -331
 0


 Fife Police
 2,625
 -79
 -1,253
 -1,002
 0


 Grampian Police
 0
 -321
 -550
 -351
 0


 Lothian and Borders Police
 4,793
 -3,147
 -3,111
 -2,979
 -306


 Northern Constabulary
 1,822
 242
 -1,140
 -972
 -941


 Strathclyde Police
 3,101
 -8,110
 -5,951
 -4,381
 -2,561


 Tayside Police
 1,992
 -914
 -937
 -1,006
 -1,125


 Tay Bridge
 1,582
 -3,507
 -250
 2,256
 -15,422


 Strathclyde Passenger Transport
 -2,135
 -11,041
 -12,920
 -14,500
 -15,000


 Total non-Housing Debt
 104,856
 82,018
 193,700
 306,333
 189,396



  Change in Housing Revenue Account Debt – Year to 31 March

  

 Local Authority (£000)
 1999
 2000
 2001
 2002
 2003


 Aberdeen City
 -6,238
 -5,227
 -13,047
 -5,304
 -4,596


 Aberdeenshire
 -571
 -1,121
 -2,761
 -2,503
 -4,311


 Angus
 -1,892
 -1,911
 -2,209
 -1,350
 -2,358


 Argyll and Bute
 -1,454
 -1,492
 -1,234
 -745
 -3,588


 Clackmannanshire
 744
 -795
 -2,840
 -1,326
 -2,521


 Dumfries and Galloway
 -1,727
 -3,079
 -2,897
 -3,616
 -5,296


 Dundee City
 -2,445
 810
 959
 811
 570


 East Ayrshire
 -2,153
 -1,816
 -1,919
 -900
 -4,133


 East Dunbartonshire
 -2,452
 -2,058
 -1,401
 -1,955
 -5,586


 East Lothian
 -3,643
 -3,533
 -5,520
 -5,174
 -9,460


 East Renfrewshire
 -112
 -1,169
 -196
 -1,317
 -1,325


 Edinburgh, City of
 1,907
 1,986
 -2,507
 -495
 -523


 Eilean Siar
 -1,573
 -800
 -770
 -638
 -1,671


 Falkirk
 -2,893
 -2,996
 -5,357
 -5,466
 -11,097


 Fife
 -5,258
 -6,857
 -4,627
 -6,957
 -10,168


 Glasgow City
 -46,732
 -9,391
 -32,983
 14,098
 -824,491


 Highland
 -6,846
 -8,512
 -8,203
 -5,105
 -9,663


 Inverclyde
 -2,464
 -1,311
 -2,846
 -1,232
 -2,203


 Midlothian
 -1,568
 -1,634
 -1,530
 -2,278
 -4,656


 Moray
 -175
 -663
 -114
 -703
 -1,298


 North Ayrshire
 -2,623
 -3,639
 -3,569
 -4,085
 -2,423


 North Lanarkshire
 -16,272
 -15,977
 -18,669
 -18,638
 -24,567


 Orkney Islands
 -825
 -1,202
 -480
 -486
 -378


 Perth and Kinross
 -521
 -2,945
 -1,994
 -3,634
 -4,532


 Renfrewshire
 -5,758
 1,070
 1,175
 -1,771
 -2,687


 Scottish Borders
 -1,606
 -632
 -1,496
 -955
 -64,312


 Shetland islands
 -641
 -2,321
 -1,574
 240
 -1,942


 South Ayrshire
 199
 -1,135
 150
 -635
 -2,423


 South Lanarkshire
 -12,137
 -14,687
 -12,647
 -12,609
 -18,696


 Stirling
 -2,136
 -3,029
 -1,548
 -2,687
 -5,986


 West Dunbartonshire
 47
 -794
 -898
 -2,049
 -3,561


 West Lothian
 -4,895
 -6,374
 -5,162
 -7,684
 -11,588


 Total Housing Revenue Account Debt
 -134,713
 -103,234
 -138,714
 -87,148
 -1,051,469



  

 Local Authority (£000)
 2004
 2005
 2006
 2007
 2008


 Aberdeen City
 -4,026
 2,145
 5,204
 12,175
 19,060


 Aberdeenshire
 -2,417
 -3,124
 -5,671
 -4,306
 -438


 Angus
 -1,715
 -325
 482
 -396
 325


 Argyll and Bute
 -5,064
 -2,879
 -1,958
 -35,753
 0


 Clackmannanshire
 -1,962
 891
 1,247
 4,025
 5,178


 Dumfries and Galloway
 -90,549
 0
 0
 0
 0


 Dundee City
 2,179
 3,759
 1,200
 3,462
 -281


 East Ayrshire
 -4,226
 -5,546
 -8,508
 -1,666
 4,610


 East Dunbartonshire
 -4,152
 -2,524
 -1,629
 -5,051
 -18


 East Lothian
 -9,961
 -5,938
 4,604
 11,606
 4,112


 East Renfrewshire
 -963
 -699
 800
 -732
 1,288


 Edinburgh, City of
 -1,189
 -2,294
 10,390
 12,501
 12,593


 Eilean Siar
 -1,032
 -934
 -83
 -37,356
 0


 Falkirk
 -9,421
 -4,857
 -7,595
 -5,417
 -4,887


 Fife
 -16,663
 -20,878
 -13,572
 -1,623
 -4,123


 Glasgow City
 -1,081
 -19,744
 0
 0
 0


 Highland
 -9,896
 -7,450
 -7,444
 -6,816
 -7,056


 Inverclyde
 -4,664
 -1,703
 -8,043
 -3,745
 -68,362


 Midlothian
 -5,960
 -4,971
 1,216
 5,546
 21,790


 Moray
 -930
 -1,679
 -3,800
 -2,049
 -1,850


 North Ayrshire
 -6,037
 -6,591
 -2,362
 867
 -2,654


 North Lanarkshire
 -22,182
 -9,626
 -8,886
 -10,110
 -29


 Orkney Islands
 -764
 -625
 0
 0
 0


 Perth and Kinross
 -6,337
 -4,731
 -3,734
 -2,816
 4,838


 Renfrewshire
 -1,881
 4,826
 3,399
 -3,486
 -18,538


 Scottish Borders
 -27
 -29
 -71
 -165
 0


 Shetland islands
 -1,265
 -1,341
 -2,206
 -1,856
 -2,243


 South Ayrshire
 -2,624
 -3,923
 1,476
 1,714
 1,963


 South Lanarkshire
 -15,810
 -14,233
 -291
 2,025
 -2,161


 Stirling
 -4,075
 -5,365
 -2,792
 1,973
 -1,602


 West Dunbartonshire
 -4,934
 697
 1,358
 -673
 1,916


 West Lothian
 -10,081
 -227
 6,968
 9,298
 7,551


 Total Housing Revenue Account Debt
 -249,709
 -119,918
 -40,301
 -58,824
 -29,018

Local Government Finance

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what ratio of debt to fixed assets is considered to be acceptable by each local authority.

John Swinney: Legislation places local authorities under a duty to "determine and keep under review the maximum amount it can afford to allocate to capital expenditure". This requires them to consider the amount of borrowing it will need to undertake, and in doing so local authorities are required to have regard to the Prudential Code. The Prudential Code requires expenditure plans to be affordable, prudent and sustainable.

  The prudential code requires local authorities to determine three indicators for borrowing. The first requires them to determine an "Authorised Limit" which is an upper limit placed upon external debt. The second is to determine an "Operational Boundary" which is the limit placed upon external debt based upon the most likely borrowing requirement. The operational boundary therefore links directly with the local authority’s plans for capital expenditure, and is the key management tool of in year monitoring. At the end of each year a local authority will calculate its actual external debt. The Scottish Government collects data on these prudential indicators from local authorities.

  The measurement of debt to fixed assets is not one of the prudential indicators.

Medical Students

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to abolish medical top-up fees for English, Northern Irish and Welsh students studying medicine at Scottish universities.

Fiona Hyslop: We have no plans at this stage to amend the level of tuition fees for undergraduate medical courses at Scottish Medical Schools.

NHS Staff

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the statistical validity is of requiring of each NHS board a minimum of 300 observations of hand hygiene and whether it will publish the evidence for this.

Nicola Sturgeon: Health Protection Scotland (HPS) advise that 300 opportunities monitored in each NHS board allows for consistency in the interpretation of results across all boards.

  If 300 opportunities are observed in each board then there is a 95% power to detect that the board is falling below the level of 90% compliance with hand hygiene procedure.

  Guidance issued in January 2009 detailed the requirements of NHS board chief executives in supporting a zero tolerance approach to non compliance with hand hygiene standards. This confirmed the expectation that in addition to the national monitoring undertaken by HPS, all boards must ensure that hand hygiene audits are undertaken on a minimum monthly basis, across all clinical areas, and for the results of this activity to be reported using the bi-monthly local HAI reporting template.

NHS Staff

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the observations of hand hygiene undertaken by trained observers and collected by Health Protection Scotland for the quarterly hand hygiene reports include a positive return for staff if they hand wash with (a) the agent provided and water only, (b) the agent provided and water or alcohol gel and (c) alcohol gel alone.

Nicola Sturgeon: The observations, carried out by trained Hand Hygiene Local Health Board Co-ordinator’s, (LHBCs) are to assess whether the correct opportunity for hand hygiene was taken by NHS staff and whether the opportunity was performed with either the correct use of soap and water or the correct use of alcohol based hand rub. If staff are observed following these procedures correctly then they would be marked a pass. If they are not following these procedures correctly, then they would be marked a fail.

Non-Profit Distributing Model

Andy Kerr (East Kilbride) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when and for what projects the non-profit distributing model has been used by it or the previous administration.

John Swinney: This information is available from the Scottish Government website by selecting the following link http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/Finance/18232/12308 and clicking on "Project List – Done Deals".

Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-29611 by Cathy Jamieson on 23 November 2006, whether actual costings are now available and, if so, what these are.

Kenny MacAskill: Details of actual substantive costings available centrally are set out in the following table in the same categories as the Financial Memorandum to the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill. The figures relate to expenditure by the Scottish Government, and annual costs relate to expenditure in 2007-08, the last full financial year. The Scottish Government does not hold details of expenditure by local authorities or others as an immediate consequence of the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006.

  

 
 Set-Up
 Annual Costs


 Scottish Police Services Authority Board
 N/A
£74,000 


 Scottish Police Services Authority Chief Executive
 N/A
£132,000 


 Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland 
£1.1 million(costs in first year of operation including set-up costs)
£1 million


 Payments to Special Constables
 N/A
£668,000


 Mandatory Drug Testing – time, materials, assessment and treatment.
£44,000
£1,633,173


 Improved Control of Public Processions
 N/A
£325,000

Rail Network

Karen Whitefield (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost was of rebranding First ScotRail trains and stations.

Stewart Stevenson: The substantive work to implement the new, unified, ScotRail brand across trains and stations has taken place during routine maintenance cycles, paid through existing maintenance budgets contained within the ScotRail franchise contract.

  The only additional cost of applying the new brand to trains has been £36,102. This was the total cost associated with the development work for the initial branded train.

  It is anticipated that the new brand will secure significant savings through the avoidance of future re-branding following the end of the current ScotRail franchise contract.

Scottish Funding Council

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether funding to support charity funded research will continue to be allocated by the Scottish Funding Council (a) in 2009-10 and (b) beyond and when new statistics will be available.

Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) will continue to support charity funded research through a new funding model, the Research Excellence Grant, from 2009-10.

  Full details will be contained in SFC’s main grant letter for higher education institutions which will be published on 2 April 2009. This will be available on the SFC website www.sfc.ac.uk.

Scottish Funding Council

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much the Scottish Funding Council will allocate to support charity funded research in 2009-10 and when new statistics will be available.

Fiona Hyslop: Full details will be contained in the Scottish Funding Council’s main grant letter for higher education institutions which will be published on 2 April 2009. This will be available on the SFC website at www.sfc.ac.uk .

Scottish Funding Council

Claire Baker (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much universities received from the allocation based on charity income under the Main Quality Research Grant (a) for 2009-10 and (b) in each of the last five years, broken down by institution, and when new statistics will be available.

Fiona Hyslop: Support for charity-funded research has, since 2006-07, been provided by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) through two elements:

  the Main Quality Research Grant based on the number of research active staff which includes staff funded by charity income, and

  An additional allocation based on charity income received by institutions to fund research activities.

  A full breakdown of support for research for 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09, by discipline, is publicly available in the Scottish Funding Council’s annual main grant letters for each higher education institutions (Table B2) at:

  http://www.sfc.ac.uk/information/info_circulars/sfc/2006/sfc2206/sfc2206.html

  http://www.sfc.ac.uk/information/info_circulars/sfc/2007/sfc1607/sfc1607.html

  http://www.sfc.ac.uk/information/info_circulars/sfc/2008/sfc1008/sfc1008.html

  From 2009-10, a new funding model, the Research Excellence Grant, is being developed. Full details will be contained in SFC’s main grant letter for higher education institutions which will be available on the SFC website www.sfc.ac.uk from 2 April 2009.

Scottish Futures Trust

Andy Kerr (East Kilbride) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Futures Trust will operate as a not-for-profit organisation.

John Swinney: As stated in the Business case Taking forward the Scottish Futures Trust (Bib. number 45605), the Scottish Futures Trust is to be run on non-profit distributing principles.

Scottish Government Buildings

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what energy-saving measures have been introduced at (a) St Andrew’s House, (b) Victoria Quay, (c) Saughton House and (d) other Scottish Executive buildings and what the effect has been in each case.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government is taking part in the Carbon Trust’s Carbon Management Programme to help ensure it achieves an 80% reduction in emissions from its business activities by 2050. The following interim targets have been set:

  Contributing to the reduction in CO2 emissions caused by energy use in SG buildings by 12.6% from 1999-2000 levels by March 2011 building to a 30% reduction by March 2020;

  Contributing to the reduction in carbon emissions from travel necessary for the Scottish Government’s administrative operations by 20% by March 2011 against 2005-06 levels building to a 40% reduction by March 2020, and

  Identifying a range of carbon reduction projects to be incorporated into the five-year facilities projects plan by May 2009.

  A range of energy saving measures has been implemented or is underway as follows:

  St Andrew’s House

  Lighting not currently included in the refurbishment projects has been re-lamped with improved efficiency tri-phosphor tubes.

  Victoria Quay

  (1) Upgrading of localised air conditioning systems, including the replacement of R22 gas systems.

  (2) Upgrading of building management system.

  (3) Retro-fitting of inverter drives to pump motors.

  (4) On-going upgrade of whole building lighting system with reduced energy consumption (T5) tubes and day light harvesting. This project will achieve a 2.76% reduction towards our overall reduction in carbon emissions.

  Saughton House

  (1) Refurbishment of toilet and washroom facilities including installation of sensor controlled taps, lavatories and urinals.

  (2) Rolling refurbishments programme with improved lighting systems with reduced energy consumption (T5) tubes and sensor controls.

  (3) Lighting not currently included in the refurbishment projects has been re-lamped with improved efficiency tri-phosphor tubes.

  Longman House

  Boiler conversion from oil to gas.

  Governor’s House

  New condensing boiler and heating pumps fitted with improved heating controls and ventilation.

  Cameron House

  Ground Floor Refurbishment– lighting and addition of gas boiler conversion from all electric system, thermal upgrade increased with insulation on Ground floor.

  Cadzow Court

  Refurbishment of lighting system with improved fittings and sensor control.

  Meridian Court

  Upgrade of building management system with new control strategies and floor by floor sub-metering.

  Across the main buildings in the Scottish Government estate we are planning to introduce improved building management systems. This will allow us to monitor better the efficiencies of on-going energy saving projects and provide information about where further improvements are required.

Scottish Government Procurement

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the socio-economic impact of the Scottish Procurement Directorate’s tender criteria.

John Swinney: The Scottish Procurement Directorate has issued detailed guidance on the scope to include social issues within public procurement procedures. Tender criteria will vary according to the particular requirement, as will the scope to consider socio-economic impact.

Scottish Government Publications

Christina McKelvie (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will produce a Scots translation of Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation: Independence and responsibility in the modern world .

Michael Russell: A summary of Choosing Scotland’s Future: A National Conversation: Independence and responsibility in the modern world has been translated into Scots and can be found on the Scottish Government website:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/a-national-conversation/Translated-Summaries.

  The Scottish Government is demonstrating its commitment to the development of Scots through initiatives such as the publication of the audit of Scots language activity; the Scots language seminar held on 9 February 2009 and our financial support for two important Scots language bodies*. We are considering, in light of these initiatives, further actions to support the development of Scots.

  *Scottish language Dictionaries and Scottish Language Centre.

Small Businesses

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many businesses will benefit from each discount band of the Small Business Bonus Scheme, also broken down by (a) local authority area and (b) parliamentary constituency.

Jim Mather: We are currently gathering information at local authority level on the uptake of Small Business Bonus Scheme. Initial indications are that uptake of the scheme amongst eligible businesses has been strong.

Transport Scotland

Andy Kerr (East Kilbride) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Transport Scotland is obliged to take the advice of the Scottish Futures Trust on the funding and delivery of transport projects such as the proposed Forth Replacement Crossing.

John Swinney: The aim of the Scottish Futures Trust is to work in collaboration with public sector bodies to arrive at investment solutions which maximise value for money.

Transport Scotland

Margaret Mitchell (Central Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget of Transport Scotland will be in 2009-10.

Stewart Stevenson: Transport Scotland’s budget in 2009-10, as published in Scotland’s Budget Documents 2009-10: Budget (Scotland) Bill Supporting Document for the year ending 31 March 2010, will be £2.229 billion.

Transport Scotland

Margaret Mitchell (Central Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the budget of Transport Scotland has been in each year since its formation.

Stewart Stevenson: Transport Scotland’s budget since its formation has been as follows:

  

 2006-07
£1.909 billion


 2007-08
£2.046 billion


 2008-09
£2.084 billion

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Review of SPCB Supported Bodies

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what evidence it took from the bodies concerned or relevant stakeholders before submitting its proposal to the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee to reduce the number of SPCB supported bodies from six to three.

Tom McCabe: Parliament has established the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee to consider and report on whether alterations should be made to the terms and conditions of the office-holders and the structure of the bodies supported by the SPCB; to consider how any proposals for future arrangements should be taken forward, including by way of a Committee Bill, and to make recommendations accordingly.

  The SPCB submitted its proposals based on its experiences of dealing with the SPCB supported bodies since the establishment of each of the offices. The SPCB was aware that each of the officeholders would themselves give evidence to the committee.

Review of SPCB Supported Bodies

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it proposes to carry out a detailed cost-benefit analysis of the potential for saving public funds through the merging of the core administration infrastructure functions of the SPCB supported bodies.

Tom McCabe: The SPCB has proposed, in evidence, to the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee that, should the Committee make recommendations to change the present structural landscape of the SPCB supported bodies, the SPCB will work with the committee and the officeholders to produce detailed cost analysis for any financial memorandum should it be required.

Review of SPCB Supported Bodies

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what account it took of the Paris Principles in making recommendations for the reorganisation of the SPCB supported bodies.

Tom McCabe: In its submission to the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee (RSSB Committee) dated 13 January 2009, the SPCB recognised the Paris Principles in relation to the independent and budgetary aspects of any national human rights institutions.

  In evidence to the RSSB Committee, the SPCB has also drawn attention to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child General Comment No2 (2002) which post dates the Paris Principles and which states:

  "6. Where resources are limited, consideration must be given to ensuring that the available resources are used most effectively for the promotion and protection of everyone’s human rights, including children’s, and in this context development of a broad-based NHRI (national human rights institution) that includes a specific focus on children is likely to constitute the best approach. A broad-based NHRI should include within its structure either an identifiable commissioner specifically responsible for children’s rights, or a specific section or division responsible for children’s rights".

  The SPCB considers that the proposal it has submitted to the RSSB Committee for a Rights Body is consistent with this approach. The SPCB has maintained in its evidence that the proposal it has put forward for a Rights Body could strengthen the advocacy role for children’s human rights by combining work related specifically to children with other more general human rights work which should provide for a more holistic approach to human rights.

Review of SPCB Supported Bodies

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it considers that the Parliament’s decision to establish a standalone office of the Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland to advocate for children and work with them is no longer relevant and, if so, on what basis.

Tom McCabe: The SPCB is not suggesting that the functions of the Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland are no longer relevant. In the SPCB’s evidence to the RSSB Committee on 10 March 2009 it proposed that, as part of a wider Rights Body, legislative changes could be made which would specifically protect the advancement of children’s rights.

  The motivation for the SPCB proposal for a single Rights Body is to simplify the landscape, encourage a cross fertilisation of ideas, provide better value for money in areas such as accommodation, and provide opportunities, in the future, for other specialist areas to be incorporated within the body without setting up new officeholders. The proposal has been submitted in the knowledge that it is a matter for the RSSB Committee to make recommendations to the Parliament based on its consideration of the submissions put forward by the SPCB and others.

Review of SPCB Supported Bodies

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what other options for carrying out the functions of the SPCB supported bodies it considered in making recommendations to the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee.

Tom McCabe: In considering options to form the submission to the Review of SPCB Supported Bodies Committee (RSSB Committee) the SPCB considered the following:

  A Complaints Handling and Standards Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, Standards Commission for Scotland (including Chief Investigating Officer) and the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland.

  A Rights Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Human Rights Commission and the commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland.

  An Information Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Information Commissioner.

  The above options were submitted to the RSSB Committee as part of the SPCB evidence.

  Other options considered were:

  A Complaints Handling Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

  A Complaints Handling Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner and the Chief Investigating Officer.

  A universal Complaints and Standards of Conduct Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, Scottish Information Commissioner, Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, Standards Commission for Scotland (including Chief Investigating Officer) and the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland.

  A Standards Body comprising the Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, Standards Commission for Scotland (including Chief Investigating Officer) and the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland.

  A Standards Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Information Commissioner, Standards Commission for Scotland and the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland.

  A Standards Body comprising the functions of the existing Scottish Information Commissioner, Standards Commission for Scotland, the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland, Scottish Human Rights Commission and the Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland.

  The SPCB was also aware that the government, as part of the public services reform agenda, was considering giving the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman additional complaints handling functions which would also have formed part of the above options.